Beta fish ... what is wrong?

Question
Hi there,
We have a red beta fish in an 8-10 in bowl w/rocks and a fake plant.  We have had him(?) for several months and all of a sudden he seems to be acting very lethargic. He isn't eating and is lying on the rocks at the bottom of the bowl.  He will get bursts of energy and swim around but won’t eat and will just lie there again.  He seems to be losing the vibrancy in his coloring as well.  Also, it almost looks like thin white fuzzy/hairy substance on him.  Is there anything we can do?  Poor little guy we don’t want to lose him.
Reading some of your other advice, we have added a light to try to warm the water but don’t know what else to do.

Thank you in advance for any advice you can offer.
Jen


Answer
Hi Jen;

Change his water twice a week and keep the temperature up. You might also need to use medication. I rarely reccommend it but if he has white all over him it may be necessary. Check your local fish store for a medication that works for the symptoms he has. The packages usually have pictures and/or descriptions on them.

If he seems to be unable to get off the bottom it could be his swim bladder has failed. If it fails there really isn't anything you can do but wait and hope it heals. The swim bladder controlls buoyancy. If the fish wants to go up in the water, the swim bladder fills with blood gasses. If the fish wants to sink down, the blood gasses dissipate. When it no longer works it cannot hold blood gasses anymore so the fish sinks down. There are several possible causes for SB failure but only one is treatable; Internal bacterial infection. It is treated with only one available medication too; "Maracyn 2" by Mardel. It is found in most fish stores. It's the only one that absorbs inside the fish where infection could be.  

I hope he feels better soon....

At Your Service;
Chris Robbins